St. Paul’s Cathedral

St. Paul’s Cathedral was founded in 604 AD in then Lundenwic which is now better known as London. The original cathedral was built at a site which was earlier a Roman trading post at the banks of the River Thames. It is considered as the first traditional Saxon cathedral. The cathedral was erected by Mellitus and it is amongst the most renowned London attractions. The St. Paul’s Cathedral is located on the Ludgate Hill in the heart of the City of London. The cathedral is also the seat of the Bishop of London. The current building has been standing dating back to the 17th century and is termed as the fifth ST Paul’s Cathedral. The St. Paul’s Cathedral is counted amongst one of the best tourist spots in London sightseeing. The beautiful architecture, ancient artwork and the awe-inspiring building designing, that too a millennium before the latest advancements in architecture could be even dreamt of, makes the cathedral amongst the churches in England.

It was believed that the St. Paul’s Cathedral stood on the same site of a previous temple dedicated to the goddess of Diana. That is what Geoffrey of Monmouth claimed too. He believed that it built after the Apollo Temple in Westminster. The cathedral was burnt to ashes in the “most fatal fire of 962”. It was found mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle that the cathedral had caught fire because it was made of timber. People still believe it to be assumptions and a proper reason for the fire is not justified. Later the cathedral was built entirely in stone. Ethelred the Unready was buried in the cathedral premises. That cathedral also got damaged in a fire in 1087. The complete city had burnt then. Later another St. Paul’s Cathedral which is often termed as the Old St. Paul’s Cathedral was built. It is believed that Normans started building the cathedral right after the fire in 1087. Its completion almost took 200 years. And several parts were still lost in a fire in 1136.

The Old St. Paul’s Cathedral had become moldy by the mid of 16th century and the Great Fire of London in the year 1666 added insult to injury. The current cathedral started building in 1168 under Sir Christopher Wren and completed on his birthday, 20th October 1708. The Royal Family is known to have used St. Paul’s Cathedral for the marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales and the Lady Diana Spencer. Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee also was celebrated at the cathedral.

The St. Paul’s underground station is the nearest tube station to the St. Paul’s Cathedral. Britain’s memorial service also honoured the victims of the 9-11 attacks in the year 2001 at the St. Paul’s cathedral. The event was attended by U.S. ambassador William Farish and the Royal Family. The cathedral is open to public for free but there is a charge for non-worshipping attendees. St. Paul’s has an amazing view of the London city from the golden gallery. The cathedral is supposed to go a £40 million refurbishment on its 300 year anniversary. Sited quite close to London’s St Paul’s Cathedral, Grange Hotels is about to launch one more luxurious and glorious hotel in the capital’s financial district – Grange St Paul’s Hotel in next 20 days.